ON THE CONFUSING STATE OF AFFAIRS IN NIGERIA Being a Text of Press Briefing delivered by the Secretary General, Jamaatu Nasril Islam (JNI) on 18th Jumadal Akhir, 1435 (19th March, 2014) It is becoming increasingly glaring that our dear nation, Nigeria, and especially northern Nigeria, is drifting towards serious situation of violent conflicts, insecurity and destruction. One needs not be told that almost the whole north is on fire. While almost the entire north east is engulfed by recurrent killings and bombings in the name of the supposed Boko Haram; in Birnin Gwari (kaduna State), some parts of Zamfara, Kebbi and other parts of the north west, the killings are perpetrated by unidentified criminals. In Benue State, it is Tiv/Fulani conflict which has long been hijacked by terrorists and political criminals, while in Nasarawa it is Ombatse, and few days ago various attacks were reported in Kaduna, Taraba and the most recent Giwa barrack attack, in Maiduguri, Borno State. As if all these are not enough, now the insecurity has taken a new, and equally very dangerous dimension in Katsina where the hitherto united Hausa and Fulani are being set against each other. This is despite the long warning about the possibility of the said clash. We could also not forget the Buni Yadi massacre which so far is the most terrible and traumatizing inhumanity displayed in our recent history. It could be observed that while initially the killings were carried out at reasonable intervals, the situation has worsened to the level that killings and destruction of property have become almost a daily occurrence. While initially lives were lost in units and/or tens, now deaths are counted in hundreds and even thousands. We are worried that many businesses have closed down and property destroyed. Even our places of worship have not been spared. We are concerned that many schools have been burnt, with thousands of our children now not attending schools. For how long shall we continue to see women raped and children slaughtered in our communities? Why should we be made refugees in our fatherland? Shall we continue to fold our arms and keep silent when the future of our country is being jeopardized? We must also express our worry about the recent unfortunate happenings in southern part of Kaduna State. We are disturbed that after relative peace has been achieved for some time, now the enemies of our country want to turn back the hand of the clock and set the state on fire. It is unfortunate that without any investigation, and out of share prejudice and hate, some people have started raising accusing fingers on certain tribal groups. We have found the unguarded utterances by those people as quite misleading and very dangerous. We caution that in times of difficulties, false claims and chauvinistic accusations would only add fuel to an already damaging fire. Nigeria belongs to all of us, and we must agree to allow all citizens to live in peace and pursue their legitimate rights. In the north today, police stations and military barracks which are supposed to be the most secured places, have become vulnerable to all sorts of attacks. With all this, what seems most disturbing is the fact that our initial confidence that the Nigerian security agencies were capable of protecting the lives and property of Nigerians, has unfortunately been challenged by the overwhelming nature of the insurgency and criminal acts being perpetrated in the country. It is against this background that JNI wishes to call on all Nigerians, Muslims and non-Muslims, northerners and southerners, to take time and ponder over these overwhelming challenges within the context of the future of our dear nation. We believe that it is high time all Nigerians come together, think together and take positive steps towards salvaging our dear nation. We must all see this insecurity as a challenge to all Nigerians. We must understand that these spate of bombings and incessant killings, if not immediately stopped, would engulf the entire nation in a manner that we will all regret. Nigerian religious bodies, professional and labour groups, civil society organizations and all well meaning Nigerians should all come out boldly and play their role in addressing this insecurity once and for all. As for those in the position of authority, we urge them to fear Allah in the discharge of their responsibility as leaders. Nigerians are looking upon them to take the nation to the path of development, peace and progress. Nigerians are yearning for justice and good governance. Nigerians are badly in need of security, and government must intensify efforts to stop these repeated acts of terror unleashed on innocent Nigerians by unscrupulous elements. Gentlemen of the press, let me at this juncture comment on the confab which the Federal Government has convened. It is on records that many Nigerians, including the leadership of the Muslim Ummah in the country, have expressed various concerns regarding the confab. Nigerians have warned that the confab is ill- timed given that electioneering is about to kick-off. Citizens have expressed worries on the fact that huge amount of money would be spent on a national talk shop at a time when millions of the countrymen are living in poverty, squalor, fear and anxiety while hundreds are killed, and thousands made homeless. Even with all these cries, the conveners have gone ahead to host the conference. We are however worried that the process of selecting participants to the conference has been observed to have thrown away all the known dictates of fair representation in a democracy which will no doubt affect the credibility of the outcome of the conference. Although democracy is a game of number, this has not been respected. For instance, While Muslims constitute the majority in the country, Christians, who by all acceptable records are not more than 40% of the countrys population, ironically constitute 62% of the total delegates. We find it a great disregard and disrespect to the conscience of the Muslims that of the 20 delegates of the Federal Government, only 6 are Muslims. No Muslim is deemed fit to make the list of the Nigerian Economic Summit. In fact in the representation of the security agencies Muslims have been so unimaginably shortchanged with only 1 Muslim out of the 6 retired Military and Security Personnel; 1 out of 6 retired security and NIA officers, and 2 out of six delegates of the Association of Retired Police Officers. This means, of the 18 security experts belonging to these three groups, only 4 (22.2%) are Muslims. The question is why this serious shortchanging of Muslims in these very sensitive groups? What is most disturbing is that the Muslim leadership and different Islamic groups have called the attention of the President on this matter, but he has paid no attention to the concerns of the Muslims. However, we want to assure everybody that the leadership of the Ummah is taking up the matter and will relentlessly continue to pursue it until the inequities are addressed. At this juncture, I will want to condole with Nigerians whose family members were lost in the recent tragedy that engulfed some hardworking Nigerian youths during the Nigeria Immigration Service screening exercise. It is sad that despite our numerous resources, we still have millions of unemployed graduates. It is pathetic that the hope of many Nigerian families could be jeopardized through the recklessness of the authorities that are supposed to work in promoting the welfare of the citizens. This incidence has no doubt presented Nigeria as an unserious nation in the comity of nations. Apart from depicting the serious level of poverty and unemployment amidst plenty of resources, it has shown how careless we are about the lives of our countrymen. JNI sympathizes with the affected families whose reward of the investment in the education of their children has been an irreparable tragedy. We call on the authorities concerned to take up this matter with all the seriousness it deserves. To conclude, we wish to call on all Nigerians to continue praying fervently towards ensuring peace and stability in the country. Specifically, we reiterate our directive to all Imams to intensify Qunut in all congregational prayers. It is our hope and prayer that all these challenges facing our dear nation would soon come to pass. Thank you very much for listening. Dr Khalid Abubakar Aliyu Secretary General
Posted on: Wed, 19 Mar 2014 14:06:46 +0000
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